Advice appreciated re new purchase - Platypus Wald Solingen

Hi,

I just bought a razor from eBay, not sure how it will turn out, but I bought because of the Platypus branding, and want to clean it up, and give it new scales out of Platypus Eucalyptus wood (Australian native wood). Im a beginner and have never tried this before. Based on the pics below (these are from the ebay listing, I wont receive it for another week), do you think this is something (apart from honing) that a beginner could do without damaging the markings or blade? If so, please advise how I should start. I will get it honed by someone local who knows what they are doing. If it's too risky for a beginner, I will send it for restoration and new scales if its not too expensive. Ive also put a couple of pics of Platypus wood & burl - Im leaning towards the burl but I think either would be nice (or may do scales in both as the wood is cheap.

Thanks.

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p.s. Got the razor for approx $30 inc delivery.

Plenty you can do with this one Andrew, it's in pretty good shape. Take it nice and slow - too many of us have stories about rushing in with our first and doing something we regret. (Yes, I'm still talking about razors...)

The first decision is whether you want to rescale off the bat. Making your own scales is tricky but certainly doable and there are Lot of people more experienced than me around here so I'll leave them to explain (or Google the threads). I'd recommend a few practice scales if this razor is going to be special to you. There are excellent templates around and plenty of tips, from start to finish.

Removing the pins can be tricky if they're still in good condition. I usually dremel off an end and then punch the pin through. Try to take it slow and easy if you want to save the scales. You'll also need to buy new pins or microfasteners (Google those for an Australian link).

To the blade. First up, a good polish with your metal polish of choice. Maas, mothers, autoglym, etc. That should give you an idea of how much work the blade will need. I typically recommended starting with an 800 grit wet/dry sandpaper, keeping it wet while you work. You might need to go to 600 or so if you want deeper staining removed, and I've gone as low as 320 in bad cases of rust/pitting. Different people recommend different things depending on how much work they want to put in and what they want the finish to be - for me, I use small strips of sandpaper, going vertical, then horizontal. Not too much pressure. I work up, making sure each pass through each grit is even, in 200 grit increments to 1200grit. Rather take the extra time with the same grit than go up too fast.

Following that, I'll use a very fine steel wool and /or mesh pads. They should help with a nice glossy finish. And then polish, polish, polish!

Repinning is a real art. Making balanced thin wooden scales is too. Plenty of people here to help, don't be shy to google the threads and ask :-) and lastly, good luck and look forward to seeing your craft!

Im not too worried about messing up custom scales if I try, as the wood I want to use is cheap. Do I need to worry about damaging the standard scales? They look like basic plastic to me.

I'll give the polishing / sanding a go on the back of the blade, but want to be careful with the etching.

If I sent the razor to someone, what would you expect a restoration to cost? Or if I sent it out to have scales made from wood I sourced, how much is the standard going rate?

You don't need to worry about the current scales if you're just going to toss them out - I'd generally keep them for less interesting blades or as temporary scales when I'm not ready for a new set of customs. If you have the tools, give your own customs a shot - I really love the process myself and I'm no expert but have done about 10 now and improve with each set.

Those etchings are deeper than you expect. Definitely give it a really good polish first, and then start with a higher grit sandpaper if you like - I can tell you I've worked with 800 grit quite comfortably over etchings like those with no problem. Working by hand is nice and gentle on the blade. (Although be careful, as the blade isn't so gentle on your fingers.) If your polish is particularly good, you might find you just want to use micromesh or very fine steel wool and skip the sanding altogether!

Best rule of thumb I've read around here is this: start with the least intrusive methods possible. Start with a polish, see what comes up. If it needs more, try a 1200 grit. Still more, head on down, then work back up again. Definitely better than rushing in with a dremel or high grit sanding disc and realising you've done too much...

Thanks. I'll start with a metal polish by hand and see how that goes first.

No problem, good luck to you! Find a really nice polish while you're awaiting your blade.

As for restoration or custom scales costs, wish I could help - there's bound to be someone around here who you can PM for a quote, possibly even based in Australia. Or check the member services pages?

Im meeting a bunch of really nice SRP guys (and gals perhaps?) from the local area in approx 1 month. I'll just do what I can with metal polish and take to get their opinions as to where to go from there. THey have loads of experience, not sure about their experience making scales however. I think they've done everything else.

Metal polish is a fine place to start for me, and perhaps some sanding on the areas without etching as well.

That razor looks to be in reasonably good shape, hone wear seems minimal and the blade itself appears to be free of rust and the other gremlins that can appear - like a frown in the edge or nicks out of it.
I would suggest following the advice from Suavio and work it from there.
For the scales, try to get them trimmed down to about 2.0mm thickness, or do it yourself if you have access to a good bandsaw. My choice of material for the scales would be the wood shown in the last pic, that grain looks really cool.
A few of us Aussies make our own scales - your best bet price wise would be to send a message to a couple of the Aussies on here, after that decide what is best for you and your budget.
Best of luck with your new acquisition.

One of the many makes from the highly respected C.F. Ern.

The only thing that worries me is the rust down near the bevel.
Could be an influence on edge integrity at that point.